The Supreme Court on Monday has granted Kerala journalist Siddique Kappan a relaxation of his bail conditions, specifically the requirement to report to a police station in Uttar Pradesh each week.
A bench comprising Justices PS Narasimha and Sandeep Mehta modified the conditions originally set in the apex court’s September 2022 bail order.
Kappan had been granted bail after two years of detention related to the Hathras case. He approached the Supreme Court seeking adjustments to the stringent bail conditions imposed on him.
In September 2022, the court had allowed Kappan’s bail after he was charged by Uttar Pradesh police under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act in connection with the alleged conspiracy surrounding the Hathras incident.
While granting bail, the Supreme Court highlighted the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression, underscoring the importance of journalistic work. Kappan was arrested in October 2020 while traveling to Hathras to cover the story of a Dalit woman who died after a gang rape.
The Uttar Pradesh government claimed that Kappan had close ties to the extremist organization Popular Front of India (PFI) and alleged that he was involved in terror funding and planning.
Authorities indicated that Kappan had “deep links” with organizations associated with PFI and its student wing, Campus Front of India (CFI), which they asserted had connections to Al Qaeda-linked groups such as IHH in Turkey.
Kappan, along with three others, was arrested by Uttar Pradesh police on October 5, 2020, in the Mant area of Mathura. Police alleged that the group intended to incite unrest in Hathras. The individuals arrested included Siddique from Malappuram, Atiq-ur Rehman from Muzaffarnagar, Masood Ahmed from Bahraich, and Alam from Rampur.
Despite the serious allegations against him, Kappan, who is a reporter for the Malayalam news portal Azhimukham and serves as the secretary of the Delhi unit of the Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ), has consistently maintained that his only aim was to report on the tragic case of the 19-year-old Dalit girl.
The Supreme Court’s decision to relax Kappan’s bail conditions marks a significant moment in his legal battle, reflecting ongoing discussions about press freedom and the rights of journalists in India. The outcome of this case could have broader implications for the media landscape and the treatment of journalists in politically sensitive situations.
